The Employment Rights Act 2025 (ERA 2025) significantly strengthens employers’ obligations to prevent harassment in the workplace.

Published: 7 October 2026
Authors: Stuart Lawrenson

Whilst employers have been under a duty since October 2024 to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment, the new legislation raises the bar considerably by requiring employers to take ‘all reasonable steps’ and by reintroducing liability for harassment carried out by third parties such as customers, clients and suppliers. Employers need to review whether their current approach is sufficient to meet this higher standard.

From reasonable steps to all reasonable steps

Currently, employers are required to take reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment of employees in the workplace. A failure to comply can lead to a tribunal awarding an uplift of up to 25% on discrimination compensation.

From 30 October 2026, the ERA 2025 will strengthen this duty by requiring employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment. This change is designed to place greater emphasis on proactive prevention rather than responding once problems arise.

The detail of what constitutes all reasonable steps will depend on the circumstances of each employer, including factors such as its size, sector, resources and working environment. However, the government has indicated that the expectation is likely to be more demanding than the current duty. The government has committed, through regulations, to set out the steps employers will be expected to take to stratify the new duty. However, the regulations themselves are not expected until 2027/28, following consultation.

New liability for third-party harassment

The ERA 2025 also introduces employer liability for third-party harassment. From 30 October 2026, employers can be liable where an employee is harassed by a customer, client, contractor or another third party in the course of their employment and the employer failed to take all reasonable steps to prevent that harassment. In this context, the harassment could relate to any protected characteristic, not just in relation to sexual harassment.

This represents a significant expansion of employer responsibility. Employees will not need to show repeated incidents or that the employer had prior knowledge of the offending behaviour. Instead, the focus will be on whether the employer took all reasonable preventative measures.

The new provisions are likely to be particularly challenging for sectors such as hospitality, retail and healthcare, where employees regularly interact with members of the public and employers have less direct control over third-party conduct.

Protection for whistleblowers

The ERA 2025 also strengthens protections for individuals who report sexual harassment.

Since 6 April 2026, disclosures that sexual harassment has occurred, is occurring or is likely to occur have been expressly recognised as capable of qualifying for whistleblowing protection. Workers who make protected disclosures may therefore benefit from protection against detriment and dismissal, provided the usual whistleblowing requirements are met.

This change is intended to encourage reporting and remove uncertainty around whether concerns about sexual harassment fall within whistleblowing legislation.

What can employers do now?

Although the regulations setting out the detail of this new duty are not yet published, indications are that prescribed steps may include:

• carrying out risk assessments
• publishing anti-harassment policies and action plans
• implementing reporting mechanisms
• establishing procedures for handling complaints
• taking account of specified matters when assessing workplace risks

Employers should also make sure they are following existing Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) guidance (including any updates to that guidance) and its eight-step guide to preventing sexual harassment at work.

In particular, employers should consider:

• updating anti-harassment and dignity at work policies
• conducting harassment risk assessments to identify specific harassment risks that might arise
• ensuring behavioural expectations or codes of conduct clearly set out what behaviour is and is not acceptable
• delivering regular and targeted training to managers and staff
• reviewing complaint and reporting procedures
• assessing risks posed by customers, clients and other third parties
• ensuring appropriate records are kept of preventative measures and investigations

Looking ahead

The harassment reforms under the ERA 2025 represent a clear shift towards prevention and accountability. Employers who fail to prepare may face increased tribunal exposure, regulatory scrutiny and reputational risk when the new regime comes into force on 30 October 2026.